Two earthquakes rattle Wellington, South Island

Two quakes struck New Zealand overnight: A magnitude 4.8 earthquake in Wellington was reportedly felt across the country. Photo / GeoNet

Two separate earthquakes have rattled people awake in Wellington, Nelson and Canterbury.

“Sharpish jolt followed by a short roll here in Newtown,” one social media user said of a magnitude 4.8 quake which struck late last night, rocking the capital.

The earthquake struck at 11.31pm. GeoNet said it hit at a depth of 51km about 10km south of French Pass, at the top of the South Island.

“There was a definite wobble of the building,” another social media user in Wellington said.

More than 7000 people reported feeling the quake on GeoNet’s website. It was felt in Marlborough, Tasman, Wellington and Taranaki.

GeoNet got one report from somebody in Auckland who described the shaking as “extreme”.

A M4.9 earthquake occurred 52km deep in the Nelson-Tasman Region at 11:31pm. Moderate shaking was felt widely across the Taranaki region, Wellington region and Nelson-Tasman region. We have received 7400+ felt reports.

For more detail, see https://t.co/ca9MSdfhgX pic.twitter.com/uasDcwErkm

— GeoNet (@geonet) August 30, 2025

A shallow M3.1 earthquake with light shaking has occurred north of Christchurch city. It was felt widely across Christchurch and we have received 3400+ felt reports.

For more detail, see https://t.co/3YdwyIRVnM pic.twitter.com/JahI960Bzn

— GeoNet (@geonet) August 30, 2025

About an hour earlier, a magnitude 3.1 earthquake hit Christchurch.

It struck at a depth of 9km and was centred within 5km of Christchurch, GeoNet said. It was reported at 10.30pm.

“That was a goody,” a social media user said.

Another described it as “short but sharp”, while someone else said they thought somebody was trying to break into their home.

“Shallow and close, rolled through pretty fast,” one social media user said.

There were more than 3000 reports of shaking on GeoNet’s website, with most describing it as “weak” or “light”. Reports came from as far as Invercargill and Dunedin, and there were two reports of shaking in Auckland.

Some on social media tried guessing the magnitude before GeoNet had posted details. Others said they did not feel it, but heard it, describing it as noisy but short-lived.

Next week, Canterbury will remember 15 years since a magnitude 7.1 quake hit near Darfield in the middle of the night.

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers business, breaking news and local stories from Tāmaki Makaurau. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.

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